The subject matter herein relates generally to electrical connector systems that are used for electrically connecting a bus bar to another bus bar or to a cable, and, more specifically, to a bus bar clamp that can be used in an electrical power distribution system, such as a server rack.
Electrical server racks may include multiple trays of at least one server on each tray that are stacked within a section of the rack. The rack may include one or two power module trays and multiple server trays. Each power module tray is configured to distribute electrical power (e.g., current) to the server trays via a bus bar assembly mounted within the rack. For example, the power module receives power from a power source, converts the power to direct current (DC), and distributes the DC power to the server trays along the bus bar assembly. The bus bar assembly includes at least one primary or main bus bar which extends across multiple server trays. Each power module tray includes at least two branches or connecting bars that extend between the power module tray and the bus bar in order to deliver power to the bus bar.
Conventionally, when a tray, such as a power module tray or a server tray, is loaded into the rack in a certain position, the branch bar extending from that tray is permanently affixed to a main bus bar in the rack. For example, the branch bar may be aligned with the main bus bar to overlap a portion of the main bus bar, and the two bars may be permanently connected to each other along the overlapping area. The two bars may be permanently connected by installing fasteners, such as bolts or rivets, through both of the bars within the overlapping area, or by welding or soldering the bars together. Such permanent connections may satisfy the requirement for providing an electrically conductive path that can provide electrical power between the corresponding tray and the main bus bar, but are not modifiable. For example, once the branch bar of a power module tray is affixed to the main bus bar within the rack, the tray cannot be moved to a different position within the rack. If there is a desire to rearrange the position of the power module tray in the rack, such as to move the power module tray from a top position of the rack to a bottom position or a middle position within the rack, then the entire bus bar assembly of the rack may have to be replaced, and a new network of bus bars has to be assembled.
A need remains for a bus bar clamp that allows removable connection to a main bus bar in a bus bar assembly that does not damage the main bus bar and provides sufficient mating forces on the mating bars to enable low contact resistance at the mating interface.